


Of Stories and Superheros

by phoenixwaller



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Library, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff, Kissing, Libraries, M/M, aged-down Yuri Plisetsky, children's reading, librarian Yuri
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 18:41:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17085638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoenixwaller/pseuds/phoenixwaller
Summary: Victor Nikiforov is taking care of his nephew Yuri for a few months, and decides to honor his sister's request to ensure that the seven-year-old reads by taking him to the furry friends reading hour at the local library. But the weekly event turns promising when he spies the cute librarian.





	Of Stories and Superheros

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Carrieosity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carrieosity/gifts).



> Happy Thursday all!
> 
> Another prompt today, this time from Carrieosity, who asked for a fic where one of our pair was a librarian and it needed to feature kids reading to animals. 
> 
> Thank you! I had a lot of fun with this. 
> 
> If you like this work, please smash the share button up above and spread the love. 
> 
>  
> 
> Happy Reading!

Victor opened the rear door of his silver sedan, allowing his seven year old nephew, Yuri, to slip out of the car. 

“Wait to take my hand so we can cross the street Yura,” Victor chided as he locked the car and saw the boy waiting near the bumper. 

“Why do I have to hold your hand?” the boy demanded, tiny nose scrunching. 

“Because it’s safer that way,” Victor said with a sigh, kneeling to meet Yuri’s green eyes. “And because it would make your mom happy.”

Yuri scowled, relenting with a much-suffering sigh. “Fine.”

Victor smiled and stood. “Good. Ready to go in?”

Yuri nodded. “Why are we at the library?”

Victor smiled down at him. “Your mom said she wants you to work on your reading while you’re staying with me.”

“I don’t wanna work on stupid reading!” Yuri protested. “I wanna go to the zoo and see the big cats.”

Victor pressed the button for the walk signal then looked down at the boy again. “What if I told you there will be cats in the library?”

Yuri narrowed his eyes. “I don’t believe you.”

Victor smiled. “There are entire books about cats in there.”

“But those are  _ books, _ ” Yuri argued. “I want real cats.”

Victor chuckled. “Well today’s your lucky day then. They have a program where you can read to animals. I called ahead and they have several cats.”

“Do they have a stripey one?”

Victor laughed. “We’ll find out when we get inside.”

“You better let me read to the stripey cat if there is one,” Yuri replied, tugging on Victor’s hand as they made their way across the street. 

“Just remember to share,” Victor attempted. “There will be other kids trying to read to animals too.”

Yuri glared up at him before turning his attention back to the library. “I better get the stripey cat.”

Victor smiled and released Yuri’s hands as they reached the steps to the door. The boy ran up and waited just outside the entrance. “Hurry up old man!”

Victor chuckled and climbed the steps. He opened the door and had to hold back a laugh as Yuri bolted inside. He followed a few paces behind, smiling as Yuri ran through the rainbow tunnel that led to the children’s section.

Excited yips and the chatter of children filled the air as Victor looked around for a librarian. He finally spied him at a small desk, and his heart stopped. Blue-rimmed glasses framed chocolate eyes under a mop of black hair. 

He was beautiful. 

Victor struggled to keep his balance as he walked over. 

“Do we need to check in for the furry friends reading hour?” he asked, amazed that his voice worked. 

The beautiful librarian smiled up at him. “No, just have your son find a book he’d like to read, and pick a bean bag.”

“Nephew, actually,” Victor clarified. 

“Sorry,” the librarian replied, a hint of pink dusting his cheeks. 

Victor smiled. “Understandable mistake. So how are the animals decided?”

“I’ll make the rounds with our volunteers in a few minutes, once everybody’s picked out a bean bag and book.”

“Thank you,” Victor said. 

“You’re welcome,” the beautiful man replied, another adorable blush dusting his cheeks. 

Victor found Yuri browsing the photo books, and somehow managed to steer him into reading a short fantasy story about a boy and a white tiger, then helped him find a bean bag just in time for the volunteers to come around with the animals. He helped him get settled in with an orange tabby before slipping out to grab a magazine to pass the time. 

Hushed voices filled the room when he returned, each child intent on telling the best story they could to their animals. Victor took a seat where he could watch over the normally rambunctious Yuri, but could barely focus on the article he was trying to read, eyes flicking to the cute librarian instead. 

Suddenly Victor was very glad he was taking care of Yuri for a few months. 

* * *

Yuri dashed across the children’s section to grab his book and find a bean bag when they returned the next week.

Victor chuckled at his determination and watched to make sure that he was behaving. 

“Welcome back,” a soft voice said beside him.

Victor turned and his eyes fell on the beautiful librarian. “Thank you, but I’m surprised you recognize me.”

Another adorable blush crossed the man’s face. “Well…” he stammered. “Not everyday we get new faces for the children's hours.”

Victor smiled and held out his hand. “Victor Nikiforov.”

The librarian returned the gesture. “Yuri Katsuki.”

“Yuri?” Victor blinked, noting the warmth in his hand. “Really?”

Yuri blinked. “Yes?”

Victor laughed. “That’s my nephew’s name too!”

Yuri smiled softly. “Really?”

Victor grinned and nodded. “Yep.”

Yuri looked around, found what he was looking for, and strode to where Yuri was sitting in a bean bag, thumbing through a book with a leopard on the cover. 

“Hi,” Yuri said, kneeling to meet Yuri’s eyes.

Green eyes narrowed. “Hello.”

Victor breathed a sigh of relief that at least Yuri had been polite. 

“Your uncle says your name is Yuri,” Yuri said.

Yuri nodded. “Da.”

Yuri smiled at the child. “My name is Yuri too. I don’t meet many people with my name here, so I thought I’d say hello.”

“Hi,” Yuri said.

“We might have to give you a nickname Yura,” Victor said. “So you two don’t get confused.”

“Why the hell would we get confused?” Yuri glared. 

“Language Yura,” Victor scolded. “And because if we’re going to keep coming to the furry friends reading hour you’re going to be seeing him a lot more.”

Yuri glared. 

Yuri glanced at the cover of the book in the boy’s hands again. “That’s a good story, isn’t it, about a boy superhero and his sidekick cat?”

“Da,” Yuri replied, questioning tone in his voice. 

“And he has a superhero name, doesn’t he?”

Yuri nodded. 

“How about we give you a superhero name too, just between us and your uncle?”

“Why do I need a superhero name?”

“Why wouldn’t you? Aren’t you a superhero, reading to the cats?”

Yuri blinked and looked at the cat that had curled up on his lap. “I… guess?”

Yuri smiled, and Victor melted. 

“I know…” Yuri said. “You can be Yurio!”

“Hmmm…” Yurio mused. “Ok, but only if the cat has a superhero name too! As my sidekick.”

Yuri laughed. “Well, what’s his superhero name then?”

Yurio looked at the cat, a fluffy one with white and charcoal fur. “Puma Tiger Scorpion!”

Yuri laughed, a sparkling sound that sunk into Victor’s heart. “That’s a mouthful! Will you be able to call for him before the bad guys get away?”

Yurio looked at the cat again. “I’ll call him Potya for short.”

“Potya?” Yuri asked.

Yurio nodded. “Potya.”

Yuri smiled. “The adventures of Yurio and Potya it is!”

Yurio grinned, and Victor chuckled at how well he’d opened up around Yuri. 

* * *

“Hurry up old man!” Yurio called, waiting at the door to the library. “I need to find a adventure book to read to Potya today!”

Victor chuckled and followed the boy inside. He followed him to the adventure books for kids and helped him find one before turning his attention to much more interesting prospects. 

Yuri was sitting behind the desk again, a stack of brand new books beside him. 

“What are you doing?” Victor asked, perching himself against a free edge of the desk. 

“New arrivals,” Yuri said. “I’m just making sure they’re all cataloged into the system properly before shelving them.”

Victor picked a book off the top of the pile and thumbed through it. Inside were vibrant illustrations, but also a decent amount of text. 

“That’s a popular author,” Yuri said, noting the book Victor had picked. “Most of the boys your nephew’s age like him. Great adventures, but with a hidden moral to each story.”

“Really?” Victor looked through the book again.

Yuri nodded and held out his hand. Victor handed over the book and watched as Yuri opened the cover to the copyright page. His fingers flew across the keyboard. “Do you have a library card?”

Victor stood long enough to pull his wallet from his pocket. He rifled through it, then handed over the card. A moment later Yuri handed back both the card and the book. “It’s due back in two weeks.”

“What?” Victor asked. 

Yuri smiled. “That one has a cat in it. I went ahead and checked it out to you so your nephew can read it at home.”

Victor blinked. “You even noticed what kinds of books he likes to read?”

Yuri blushed adorably. “Well… I… I have to look out for my fellow Yuri don’t I?”

Victor smiled. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being so good to us.”

Yuri’s blush deepened. “It… it’s nothing.”

“Either way, I appreciate it,” Victor said. 

Yuri sputtered as he stood and loaded up a cart. He pushed it toward the new books section, and Victor followed. 

“Need a hand?” Victor offered as Yuri started shelving the books.

Yuri shook his head. “I’ve got it. Thanks.”

“So what made you want to become a librarian?” Victor asked, watching as Yuri slid the books into their new places.

Yuri turned to him, a soft smile on his face. “I grew up in a little town in Japan, and it always seemed like it was so far from everything. But then I discovered books, and the world came to me instead. I could go anywhere, do anything, be anyone, by simply reading. As I got older, I wanted other kids to realize how much more there was to find in books.”

Victor smiled. “I’m glad you found books then.”

Yuri turned to him, a confused look on his face. “Hmm? Why is that?”

Victor leaned in slightly. “Cause if it weren’t for books, I wouldn’t have met you.”

The blush that darkened Yuri’s cheeks made the flirting immediately worth it. 

* * *

Victor pushed the cart down the aisle, glancing at the cans and boxes lining the shelves, looking for something healthy he could feed them.

Yurio glared at him from the basket. “I want mac and cheese.”

Victor shook his head. “We had that yesterday. Let’s find something different.”

Yurio crossed his arms and scrunched his nose again. “Don’t want anything else.”

“What if I bake some chicken? We can have green beans with it.”

“No! Mac and cheese.”

Victor sighed. 

“Yurio!”

Victor blinked and looked around. He didn’t see anybody. He turned back to Yurio. “Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” Yurio scowled. 

“Yurio! Help Yurio!”

Yurio sat up in the cart and looked around. 

Victor looked and grinned, seeing a hand waving from the end of the aisle. “It’s coming from this direction.”

Yurio turned and knelt in the cart, eyes wide as Victor rounded the corner to see Yuri trying to reach a bottle of soy sauce on the top shelf. 

“Yurio!” Yuri cried, eyes sparkling in a way that made Victor’s knees weak. “Help Yurio! I can’t reach. I need a superhero!”

Victor forced a serious look to his face. “I dunno Yurio, can you do it without Potya to help?”

“I can get it!” the boy declared. 

Victor smiled, lifted him out of the card and settled him on his shoulders. “Save the day Yurio!”

He walked over, and Yurio easily reached the bottle at the back of the top shelf. He grabbed it and handed it to Yuri. 

“Thank you so much Yurio!” Yuri said, smile on his face. “You saved the day. I can’t make katsudon without soy sauce.”

Victor helped Yurio off his shoulders. 

“What’s that?” Yurio asked.

Yuri blushed. “It’s… my favorite food. But I can’t eat it too much. It goes right to my middle.”

“So you’ll get fat if you eat too much?”

Yuri knelt to look Yurio in the eye. “There is a saying: you are what you eat. Well katsudon is made with pork, which is pig. So if I eat too much I get all round just like a piggy.”

Yurio snickered. “So if you eat too much… cats… u… ummm…”

Yuri smiled. “Katsudon. Can you say it with me?”

Yurio nodded. 

“Ok… cats…”

“Cats…”

“Oooo…”

“Oooo…”

“Don.”

“Don!”

Yuri smiled. “Now put it all together.”

“Cats...ooo...don?”

Yuri nodded. “A bit faster now.”

“Katsudon!” Yurio declared. 

Yuri beamed. “You got it Yurio!”

“So if you eat too much... katsudon... you turn into a piggy?”

Yuri nodded. “Yep!”

Yurio grinned. “Then why do you eat it?”

Yuri laughed. “Because it tastes good!”

Yurio grinned, then turned to Victor. “I want katsudon for dinner!”

Victor sighed and frowned. “I don’t know how to make that Yura.”

Yurio pouted. “I want katsudon!”

“I’m sorry Yura,” Victor replied, shaking his head. 

Yurio turned to Yuri. “Let’s go to Yuri’s house then! He knows how!”

Yuri frowned. “I’m sorry Yurio, but my place is pretty small, and I don’t think my roommate would appreciate me coming home with unannounced guests.”

Yurio scowled and stamped his foot. 

Victor braced himself for the tantrum. 

Yurio crossed his arms. “Fine. You come with us to Victor’s house and make it.”

Yuri blinked, and looked up at Victor, who shrugged. 

Yuri put a serious look on his face. “That was rude Yurio, not much like a superhero. It’s not your house to invite me to, is it?”

Yurio’s lower lip quivered and he shook his head. “No. It’s uncle Victor’s.”

“Then shouldn’t you ask uncle Victor if you can invite somebody over?”

Yurio turned to Victor. “Can Yuri come over to make katsudon?”

Victor glanced up at Yuri, who smiled and gave the briefest nod. 

“What do you say?” Victor asked, turning his attention back to Yurio. 

“Please?” asked the boy. 

Victor nodded. “You can invite Yuri over to make katsudon. But you’ll have to go to bed right after dinner, no arguing tonight. And don’t throw a tantrum if he says no, ok?”

Yurio nodded and turned back to Yuri. “Yuri, will you come over to uncle Victor’s tonight to make katsudon?”

Yuri smiled. “I’d be honored to. Can you help me get the rest of the ingredients Yurio?”

Yurio nodded. 

Yuri grinned and pointed at another bottle on the shelf. “I’ll need that one too. Go ahead and put it in the basket.”

Yuri turned to Victor as Yurio grabbed the bottle, a soft smile on his face. 

Victor couldn’t help himself as he smiled back and watched Yurio put the bottle in the basket. 

“What next?” Yurio asked. 

* * *

Yuri slid the bowl in front of Yurio, and Victor couldn’t miss the way the boy’s eyes grew wide as he smelled the food.

“Now we have a custom in Japan,” Yuri said. “When we’re getting ready to eat we give thanks for the food. We say itadakimasu. Can you say that with me Yurio?”

Yurio scrunched his nose. “Say it again.”

Yuri smiled and repeated it slowly. Once Yurio had it down they started eating. 

“Vkusno!” Victor declared as soon as he’d taken a bite. “Yuri! This is amazing!”

Yuri blushed, a sight Victor knew he’d never tire of. “It’s a family recipe. My mom serves this to customers of our onsen in Japan.”

“What’s a onsen?” Yurio asked between forkfuls of food. 

Yuri smiled. “It’s a hot spring. People from all over town come to relax and bathe in the hot water.”

“Oh,” Yurio said. “You bathe with other people? That’s weird!”

Yuri shrugged. “I never thought it was, but I grew up there. Every place has different customs, and what seems weird to some people is perfectly natural for others.”

“Oh,” Yurio said, then turned back to his food. “This katsudon is really good.”

Yuri smiled. “Why thank you. That’s high praise from a superhero.”

Yurio grinned and started shoveling more food into his mouth. 

Victor turned to Yuri. “So what does a children’s librarian do in his time off?”

Yuri smiled. “I read a lot actually. It helps to know what books are appropriate for what ages, and some of the different themes. That way when parents or kids ask me to recommend a book I can get them one they’d like.”

Victor grinned. “Yurio, did you like the book Yuri had me check out for you?”

Yurio beamed. “It was great! The talking cat used his shadow to scare off the bad guys, and he was rewarded with a  _ huge _ bowl of cream!”

“Was he now?” Yuri asked. “And what happened to the bad guys after that?”

“The other people caught them, and made them give back all the things they’d taken without permission. Then they had to say they were sorry and write letters about why it was wrong.”

Yuri nodded, serious look on his face. “Sounds like they got what they deserved then.”

Yurio nodded. 

“So Yuri gave you a good recommendation, didn’t he?” Victor asked. 

Yurio nodded enthusiastically. 

Victor smiled at Yuri, who blushed lightly. 

Yurio devoured the rest of his bowl, and burped loudly as he set it down. 

Victor rolled his eyes. “I take it you’re done?”

“Yes.”

Victor nodded. “Go bathe and get ready for bed then. Once you’re clean you can have a small bowl of watermelon for dessert.”

Yurio scowled. 

“Yura,” Victor warned. “You agreed that if I let you invite Yuri over you’d go right to bed.”

Yurio sighed. “Fine.” He slid off his chair and headed toward the bathroom. 

“Do you need to supervise?” Yuri asked softly.

Victor smiled and shook his head. “He’s fine. He insisted he could take his own baths the first day here, and he’s proven that he can. He’s always clean, and even the bathroom is left in good condition.”

Victor stood. “I do need to chop the watermelon for him though. Do you want some?”

Yuri smiled. “That would be nice. Thank you.”

Victor pulled a watermelon out of the fridge and cut a slice from it before he started chopping the slice into cubes. He parted them out and put them into bowls, waiting for Yurio to return. 

“Thank you,” Victor said, once more taking a seat at the table. 

“Hmm?” Yuri asked. “For what?”

Victor smiled. “For humoring him, and introducing us to delicious new food. You didn’t have to come cook for us.”

Yuri blushed. “It was nothing.”

“It was time off, and you didn’t have to spend it with people you met through work.”

Yuri shook his head. “I enjoyed it.”

Victor smiled. “Me too.” He paused. “Do you need to let your… roommate… know where you are?”

Yuri shook his head. “No. He’s probably glad to have the place to himself for a bit.”

Victor reached across the table to rest his hand on top of Yuri’s, and was rewarded with a blush and a soft smile. 

“Gross!”

Yuri yanked his hand back as Yurio glared at them. 

Yurio climbed back onto the chair, dressed in pajamas and smelling of soap. 

Victor laughed and stood to retrieve the bowls of watermelon. 

Yurio speared a piece of melon with a fork and popped it into his mouth. “Mmmm.”

“It’s a good treat for a superhero, isn’t it?” Yuri asked. 

Yurio nodded. “I like watermelon.”

Yuri smiled. “So do I. It must be a Yuri thing.”

Yurio laughed. 

A few bites later and Yurio’s bowl was empty. 

“Ok Yura, off to bed,” Victor said. “I’ll be there in a minute to turn out the light.”

Yurio nodded and slid off the chair. He was halfway to his bedroom before he stopped. “Yuri?”

“Yes Yurio?”

“Thank you for making katsudon. It was yummy.”

Yuri smiled. “You’re welcome Yurio.”

“Goodnight!”

“Goodnight.”

Victor turned to Yuri. “Shall I put on some coffee for us?”

Yuri blushed again. “Sure. I’d like that.”

Victor smiled. “I need to go tuck him in. But it shouldn’t take long.”

“Ok.”

Victor walked into Yurio’s bedroom and saw the boy already under the covers, favorite stuffed cat in his arms. 

“Uncle Victor?” Yurio asked as Victor took a seat at the edge of the bed. 

“Yes Yura?”

“Can Yuri come over and cook again sometime?”

Victor hummed. “I think next time it’s your turn to cook. It’s only fair.”

Yurio’s eyes widened. “But I don’t know how to cook!”

Victor smiled. “I’ll help. Maybe we’ll make pirozhkis. He introduced us to Japanese food, so it’s only polite to introduce him to Russian food, right?”

Yurio grinned. “I love pirozhkis! Yuri will love them too, right?”

Victor laughed. “We can hope.”

Victor reached out and tucked a lock of blond hair behind Yuri’s ear. “Your mom said she’ll call tomorrow. So you can tell her all about katsudon, and we can get your grandpa’s phone number to get his pirozhki recipe.”

Yurio smiled as he settled against the pillow. “Grandpa makes the best pirozhkis.”

Victor nodded. “Get some sleep kiddo.”

Yurio nodded and curled around his stuffed toy. 

Victor smiled and stood, he turned out the light as he left the room and left the door open just a crack. 

He returned to the kitchen to find Yuri washing dishes. “You don’t have to do that you know,” he said with a smile. “You’re a guest.”

Yuri smiled. “There weren’t many.”

Victor walked over and grabbed a freshly rinsed bowl and a towel. He dried the bowl and set it aside just in time for Yuri to hand him another. 

“So you grew up at an onsen?” Victor asked. 

Yuri hummed. “Yeah.”

“Do you get back often?”

Yuri paused in his washing. “Not as often as I’d like. Librarians don’t exactly make the most money.”

There was a pause. 

“And what do you do that you can come to the library with your nephew in the middle of the day?” Yuri asked. 

Victor smiled. “I’m lucky is what I am.”

“Hmm?”

Victor paused in drying the third bowl to stare at the backsplash of the stove. “I met a really great group of people in college, and we decided to make a mobile game just for fun. Then… it took off and got insanely popular. We made a few variants. Merchandisers came in and made toys and everything. Then just as sales were starting to slow, a big name game company swooped in and paid way too much money for it all. My friends and I are still technically on staff as creative talent, but for the most part we’ve easily got enough money for the rest of our lives. We just show up to the offices every once in a while with a new idea, and because our first game was so popular they usually run with it.”

“Really?”

Victor nodded. “Apparently it’s good for them to let us do our thing though, cause our cuts from newer games is pretty impressive which means they’re still popular.”

“Wow…”

Victor smiled down at Yuri after setting the last bowl back in the cabinet. “How about that coffee?”

Yuri nodded. “Ok.”

Victor poured two mugs of coffee and handed Yuri one. He watched with a smile as Yuri added cream and sugar, then led the other man to the living room. 

“So what’s your favorite type of book?” Victor asked once they’d taken seats on the couch. 

Yuri smiled and hummed. “Fantasy. I just love how creative people can be.”

Victor chuckled. “Somehow I can see a young version of you, wide-eyed as you discover magical worlds.”

Yuri blushed and took a sip of coffee to try and cover it. “Your turn. Why is Yurio staying with you?”

Victor took a sip of his own coffee. “That’s sort of a long story. But I’ll do what I can to summarize.”

Victor put his finger to his lip. “My sister Natalya is Yura’s mother. She’s a year younger than me and had him a bit on the young side, but she and her husband were in love, and got married as soon as they found out she was pregnant…”

Victor sighed and set his coffee mug on the table. “Then, about a year after Yura was born there was an accident, and his father was killed. Natasha was devastated, but she never let it show. She moved in with our parents in Russia, determined to get back on her feet as a single mother.”

Victor sighed. 

Yuri bit his lip. “There’s more… isn’t there?”

Victor nodded. “Mama… mama got sick. And while she was in the hospital papa caught something. But he was so dedicated… he refused to tell anybody that he was ill until mama passed. By then, an aggressive pneumonia had set in. And…”

Victor paused. 

Yuri squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry.”

Victor smiled softly at Yuri. “Thank you.”

Victor took a deep breath. “After that, I moved Natalya and Yura here. I’d already become a legal resident, mostly because of the game and company that formed around it. Turns out when a multi-million dollar company springs up around your product, it’s easy to get a green card. She’s still working with visas, but we’re hoping that she’ll be eligible for a green card soon.”

Victor smiled. “Yura reminds me so much of Natasha. She’s so proud and independent. Even though I have plenty of money for all of us, she refuses to let me do more than the bare minimum. The most she ever let me spend on her was when I bought her and Yura a condo. I offered a house, but she insisted that she wanted to buy a house on her own earnings. I think she only took the condo because I’d already scouted places with a realtor before they arrived, and she didn’t want  _ their _ hard work to be wasted.”

Yuri smiled at him. “So where is she now?”

Victor nodded. “She’s worked so hard, and finally got a fantastic job opportunity that uses her fluencies in Russian, English and French. But she has to get several certifications, and then there is an onboarding that she needs to attend. The crash courses for the certifications were almost two months, and is only offered at a college a few hours away. We decided it would be better for her to stay there than be back and forth. Then after that… next week in fact… she’ll be off to the company headquarters for a three week employee training.”

“Sounds like a lot,” Yuri said. 

Victor smiled. “She could have spread it out if she wasn’t so determined. The community college here offers the certifications, just at the normal pace for classes and not the summer shortened classes. And there is onboarding every quarter. But she wanted to do this fast, I think so that everything was settled before the new school year started. She’s so focused on Yura’s education, and doesn’t want to do anything to impede it.” 

“She sounds dedicated.”

Victor hummed. “Yura is among the top in his class because of it, though he has problems making friends. Then, every night Natasha works with him to teach him Russian.”

“Wow…”

Victor laughed. “I’m actually supposed to speak Russian with him as much as I can. But I’m so used to using English now that I forget sometimes.”

“So he’s already bilingual?”

Victor hummed again. “Sort of. He can speak Russian, and Natasha does what she can to get Russian books for him, but he can’t read or write it as well yet. He’s been immersed in American culture for as long as he can remember, so the Cyrillic is a bit foreign to him.”

Yuri was silent for a moment. 

“Yuri?”

Yuri shook his head and smiled. “Just lost in thought.”

Victor chuckled. “Your turn. What brought you to the US?”

Yuri thought for a moment. “I think… curiosity was the biggest thing. The world was more accessible through books, but… I still wanted to experience it, and the US seemed a good place to start. I’d originally planned to only stay through college, but once I graduated I realized that I wasn’t ready to go home yet. So I turned my student visa into a work visa and found a job.”

Victor smiled. “Well I’m glad for your curiosity then.”

Yuri blinked. “Why is that?”

Victor reached over and laid his hand over Yuri’s. “Because it allowed me to meet you.”

Yuri chuckled. “You said that about books too.”

Victor leaned in. “I’m thankful for everything that’s led me to you.”

Yuri blushed crimson. “I… um…”

“Yuri?”

Yuri looked up at Victor, chocolate eyes wide. “Yes?”

“May I kiss you?”

A beat of silence as Yuri’s eyes somehow grew wider and his blush deepened. Then, “Yes.”

Victor smiled as his hand moved to cup the side of Yuri’s face, thumb brushing his lips before settling on his cheek. He leaned in and pressed his lips to Yuri’s. 

Yuri’s lips were warm, and slightly chapped, but it was the soft sigh that escaped that Victor knew he’d never forget. 

Victor tipped their foreheads together as he pulled back. “That was perfect.”

“Nnn-mmm,” Yuri disagreed. 

Victor blinked. “What was wrong with it?”

Yuri smiled at him. “It wasn’t long enough.”

Victor smiled in return. “I guess I’ll just have to fix that then.”

He leaned in to kiss Yuri again and moaned softly when Yuri’s lips parted in invitation. His hand moved from Yuri’s face to his waist and pulled him close. Their tongues explored each other’s mouths until they had to stop for air. 

“Better?” Victor whispered. 

“Perfect,” Yuri replied, smiling against his lips. 

“Good,” Victor said as he kissed Yuri again. 

* * *

“Don’t run Yurio,” Yuri said from behind his desk as they walked in.

Victor turned and smiled at his boyfriend. He walked over and sat on the edge of the desk. “Still coming over for dinner tonight?”

Yuri nodded. “I’m looking forward to it.”

“Me too.”

“Get Yurio? I have a few special books for him today.”

Victor blinked and stood. He found Yurio browsing adventure books. 

“Yura? Yuri says he has some special books for you today.”

Yurio blinked and followed Victor back to the children’s circulation desk. Yuri smiled and reached for several books off to the side. 

“So I made some calls...” Yuri started. “I found a library in an area with a large number of Russian immigrants, and got help from one of the librarians there.” He spread out several Russian-language books. “We got these through the inter-library loan program. They’re all for your age Yurio, and all of them feature cats.”

Yurio reached out. “You got Russian books… for me?”

Yuri nodded. “Your uncle Victor told me how hard your mom is working to teach you Russian. Won’t she be proud when she gets back to see you’ve been working on reading in both your languages?”

Yurio scooped up the books, cradling them to his chest. “Thank you Yuri.”

Yuri smiled. “I’ll check them out to your uncle Victor. They’re due back in two weeks, then we’ll ask them to send more. Ok?”

Yurio nodded. 

Yuri smiled at him. “Now go find your beanbag. I’m sure even Potya will be amazed that his superhero can read in  _ two _ languages.”

Yurio nodded and ran off. 

Victor smiled at Yuri and forced himself not to lean in and kiss him at work. 

“So what are you going to do once Yurio’s mom is back and you’re not coming here every week for him to read and you to flirt?” Yuri asked with a grin. 

Victor laughed. “I’ve already talked to her about watching him once a week so we can keep coming.”

“Oh?”

Victor grinned and nodded. “But after school starts… does it slow down some?”

Yuri hummed. “A bit.” 

Victor knelt, resting his arms on the desk. “So what’ll you do?”

Yuri shrugged. “Keep working. It still gets busy enough after school.”

Victor smiled. “What if I said I have a better idea?”

“What would that be?”

“How about you get the superhero treatment, and we fly to Japan for a visit?”

Yuri blushed. “But I’m not…”

Victor leaned in. “If Yura is a superhero for reading to Potya, then you’re the superhero who gave him his powers.”

Yuri shook his head. “It’s just what I love to do.”

Victor laughed. “Then how about I take my boyfriend for a long overdue trip home?”

Yuri smiled. “Ok.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I appreciate any comments, kudos or shares. 
> 
> Social Media Links! [Twitter](https://twitter.com/phoenixwaller) | [Tumblr](http://phoenixwaller.tumblr.com/) | [Plurk](https://www.plurk.com/phoenixwaller) | [Pillowfort](https://www.pillowfort.io/phoenixwaller)
> 
> Find my other YoI fanfics on my AO3 profile at <http://archiveofourown.org/users/phoenixwaller/profile>


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